Facts the Watchtower Society doesn’t want you to know

Fully documented with photocopies of statements from rare Watchtower publications, this book reveals many facts the Watchtower Society tries to hide from Jehovah’s Witnesses and investigators of this religion. Click HERE to Order this book for $9.99.

A BUSY RELIGION

As of 2010, there are over 7 million active Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide, spending approximately one billion hours each year serving the Watchtower organization. The Jehovah’s Witnesses are active in over 230 countries and are the fastest growing religion in the former USSR.

Claiming that people must “come to Jehovah’s organization for salvation,” 1. the Watch Tower Society places great pressure on Jehovah’s Witnesses to perform according to their guidelines. In addition to attending several meetings each week, Jehovah’s Witnesses are required to spend many hours each month distributing Watchtower articles, conducting Watchtower “Bible studies,” and researching various topics in Watchtower literature for discussion during their meetings. Witnesses are forbidden to serve in the military, salute the flag, say the pledge of allegiance, vote in elections, take blood transfusions, celebrate birthdays and holidays including Thanksgiving, Easter, and Christmas, and are forbidden to read literature critical of the organization. Over the years, Jehovah’s Witnesses have also been discouraged from associating with non-Jehovah’s Witness friends, participating in after school activities such as sports, and furthering their education by going to college.2.

All these restrictions and demands placed on Jehovah’s Witnesses tend to isolate them from the rest of Society with the result that the organization becomes the “life” of the Jehovah’s Witnesses who actively serve it. If a certain Jehovah’s Witness fails to follow the guidelines set up by the organization, he is then subject to “disfellowshipping” in which the individual is shunned by all his friends and relatives in the organization.3. For many, this is a painful experience which leaves former Jehovah’s Witnesses feeling hopeless and empty. Because of these policies and the overwhelming control this organization has over the physical and spiritual lives of so many people, it is of paramount importance that a person thoroughly examine the Society’s claims and history before becoming involved with this organization.

“We need to examine, not only what we personally believe, but also what is taught by any religious organization with which we may be associated. Are its teachings in full harmony with God’s Word, or are they based on the traditions of men? If we are lovers of the truth, there is nothing to fear from such an examination.” —The Truth that Leads to Eternal Life, Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society, 1968, p. 13

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND:

In 1879, at the age of 27, Charles Taze Russell, founder of the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society, began publishing Zion’s Watch Tower and Herald of Christ’s Presence. Born in Allegheny, Pennsylvania in 1852, he was raised a Presbyterian but later joined a liberal Congregational Church because he preferred its views. For 10 years, prior to publishing his Watch Tower articles, Russell studied with a splinter group off of Second Adventists and was greatly influenced by their teachings against the bodily return of Christ and the immortality of the human soul.4. Russell taught and published many doctrines that the current Watch Tower Society totally rejects and engaged in practices regarded by current Jehovah’s Witnesses to be of pagan origin. In fact, if Russell were a Jehovah’s Witness in the current Watchtower organization, he would have been disfellowshipped for his beliefs and practices! Among these are the following:

Using the Masonic Knights Templar logo of the Cross and Crown on his issues of Zion’s Watch Tower.6.

Teaching that he was the “Faithful and Wise Servant” of Matt. 24:45-51, which resulted in many of his followers actually worshipping him.7.

Teaching that “the forming of a visible organization…would be out of harmony with the spirit of the divine plan.” “Beware of ‘organization.’ It is wholly unnecessary.”8.

Teaching that Christians “are divine beings — hence all such are Gods, thus we have a family of God….in the resurrection we will rise in our true character as Gods.”9.

Teaching that “the whole body of Christ the ‘Mighty God’…shall share in the work of restoring the life lost in Adam, and therefore be members of that company which as a whole will be the Everlasting Father to the restored race.”10.

Teaching that the Lord Jesus should be worshipped and that he is not Michael the archangel.11.

Teaching that one can join the military as long as he did “not shoot anybody.”13.

Teaching that white skin is better than black skin and that “the white race exhibits some qualities of superiority over any other.”14.

Teaching that the shape of one’s brain determines his responsiveness to God.15.

Teaching that Jehovah “governs his universe” from the star “Alcyone” in the Pleiades constellation.16.

Teaching that the “Great Pyramid of Gizeh” was “God’s stone witness” which proved Russell’s claims that “the time of the end” embraced a period from 1799-1914, with Jesus’ invisible presence beginning in 1874, and the destruction of present government in 1914.17.

In the 1954 Douglas Walsh Trial in Scotland, Fred Franz, who was Watchtower president from 1977-1992, was asked about the Society’s changes in doctrine. Here is how he answered:

Q. So that what is published as the truth today by the Society may have to be admitted to be wrong in a few years?A. We have to wait and see.Q. And in the meantime the body of Jehovah’s Witnesses have been following error?A. They have been following misconstructions on the Scriptures.Q.Error?A. Well, error.—Douglas Walsh Trial, Pursuer’s Proof, 1954, p. 114

“Satan attempted to use his influence in a subtle way, and in this he was successful. How so? By insinuation and falsehood. He put forth error, under cover of a lie, as a substitute for truth. In other words, he put darkness for light.” —The Watchtower, May 15, 1976, p. 304

“If we were following a man undoubtedly it would be different with us; undoubtedly one human idea would contradict another and that which was light one or two or six years ago would be regarded as darkness now: But with God there is no variableness, neither shadow of turning, and so it is with truth; any knowledge or light coming from God must be like its author. A new view of truth never can contradict a former truth. ‘New light’ never extinguished older ‘light,’ but adds to it…. So is it with the light of truth; the true increase is by adding to, not by substituting one for another.” — Zion’s Watch Tower, February 1881, p. 3

THE NEW WORLD TRANSLATION:

In 1950, the Watch Tower Society came out with their own translation of the Bible, the New World Translation. Jehovah’s Witnesses are told that this translation is the most accurate, unbiased translation available. The Society claims that the New World Translation Committee was made up of highly trained Greek scholars who did their best to “transmit his [God’s] thoughts and declarations as accurately as possible.”18. However, when one endeavors to check into the credentials of these translators, one finds that the Society is unwilling to release this information, stating that the Committee desires that all the glory for this translation go to Jehovah God and therefore the translators desire to remain anonymous.

On the surface, this may sound quite noble and honorable; but one may wonder, is this the real reason why they desire to remain anonymous? Over the years, further investigation has revealed who the translators of the New World Translation were, and the facts show that they were totally unqualified for the task of translation. Five of the six Watchtower Governing Body members who were on the Translation Committee had no formal training whatsoever in the Biblical languages. The fifth one, Fred Franz, (former Governing Body member and Watchtower president from 1977-1992) claimed to have some education, but in the Douglas Walsh Trial in Scotland, he gave this testimony under oath:

Tuesday, 23rd November, 1954:
Frederick William Franz, Examined:

Q.Have you also made yourself familiar with Hebrew? A.Yes….Q.So that you have a substantial linguistic apparatus at your command? A.Yes, for use in my biblical work. Q. I think you are able to read and follow the Bible in Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Spanish, Portuguese, German, and French?A.Yes. Q. It is the case, is it not, that in 1950 there was prepared and issued what is called the New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures?A. Yes….Q. I think that it was your duty, was it not, before the issue of that New World Translation by your Society to check that translation for accuracy? A. That is true. Q. In light of your studies and in light of your knowledge?A. That is true.Q. And did you do so?A. I did so….Q.And was it your duty on behalf of the Society to check the translation into English from the original Hebrew of that first volume of the Old Testament Scriptures? A. Yes….Q.In so far as translation of the Bible itself is undertaken, are you responsible for that? A.I have been authorised to examine a translation and determine its accuracy and recommend its acceptance in the form in which it is submitted. Q. Are the translators members of the Editorial Committee?A. That is a question which I, as a member of the Board of Directors, am not authorised to disclose….Q. When did you go to the University?….Q.Did you graduate? A.No, I did not….Q.Had you done any Hebrew in the course of your University work? A.No, I had not, but in the course of my editorial work, my special research work for the president of the Society, I found it was very necessary to have knowledge of Hebrew, and so I undertook a personal study of that.

Q.You, yourself, read and speak Hebrew, do you? A.I do not speak Hebrew. Q. You do not?A. No.Q.Can you, yourself, translate that into Hebrew?A. Which?Q. That fourth verse of the Second Chapter of Genesis?A. You mean here?Q. Yes?A.No, I won’t attempt to do that.—Douglas Walsh Trial, Pursuer’s Proof, 1954, pp. 7-9, 88, 91-92, 102-103

This exercise which Franz was unable to do is something which the average first or second year Hebrew student could have accomplished without any difficulty. Is it any wonder the Society refuses to publicly reveal the people who were involved in the translation of their Bible? Would you put your trust in a doctor who refused to give his credentials? Yet, this is what many Jehovah’s Witnesses are doing when it comes to vital Bible truth.

THE NEW WORLD TRANSLATION compared with THE KINGDOM INTERLINEAR TRANSLATION OF THE GREEK SCRIPTURES:

In 1969, the Watch Tower Society produced The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures, “Presenting a literal word-for-word translation into English under the Greek text as set out in ‘The New Testament in the Original Greek — The Text Revised by Brooke Foss Westcott D.D. and Fenton John Anthony Hort D.D.’ ” –Title page of 1969 ed. The Watch Tower Society states:

“The purpose behind the publishing of The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures is to aid such seekers of truth and life. Its literal interlinear English translation is specially designed to open up to the student of the Sacred Scriptures what the original koi-ne’ Greek basically or literally says….The word-for-word interlinear translation and the New World Translation are arranged in parallel on the page, so that comparisons can be made between the two readings. Thus, the accuracy of any modern translation can be determined….We offer no paraphrase of the Scriptures….To each major word we have assigned one meaning and have held to that meaning as far as the context permitted.” —The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures, 1985 edition, pp. 5, 9-10

The following is a comparison between the rendering of the Society’s Kingdom Interlinear Translation and the New World Translation:

Verse

Interlinear Translation

New World Translation

Col. 2:9

“all the fullness of the divinity” dwells in Christ.

“all the fullness of divine quality” dwells in Christ.

Note: Greek scholar Joseph Henry Thayer states that the Greek word used here “Theotes” literally means “deity i.e. the state of being God, Godhead” —The New Thayer’s Greek English Lexicon of the New Testament, 1974 p. 288

Verse

Interlinear Translation

New World Translation

Col. 1:16-17

Christ created “all (things).”

Christ created“all [other] Things.”

Note: The Watch Tower Society inserts the word “other” four times into this passage, in order to make it compatible with their doctrine of Christ having been created. However, in John 1:3, we read that Christ created “all things” —not all other things.

Verse

Interlinear Translation

New World Translation

Gal. 2:20 & 2 Cor. 13:5

Christ is living “in me.”

Christ is living “in union with me.”

Phil. 3:9

“be found in him”

“be found in union with him”

Note: To be found “in Christ” means that one is trusting in Christ alone for his righteousness and is therefore positionally “in Christ.” Thus, when God looks at this person who is “in Christ,” He sees this person in the context of Christ’s righteousness instead of his own (see Col. 3:3). There is a big difference between being “in union” with Christ and actually being positionally “in Christ.”

Verse

Interlinear Translation

New World Translation

Phil. 2:9

God gave Christ the name “over every name.”

God gave Christ the name “above every [other] name.”

Note: The Watch Tower Society teaches that Jehovah God has the name above every name and therefore, they had to insert the word “other” to justify their doctrine. However, according to John 17:11, Jesus has Jehovah’s Name!

Verse

Interlinear Translation

New World Translation

John 1:1

“god was the Word.”

“the Word was a god.”

Note: The Society argues that because the definite article “the” doesn’t appear before God in this half of the verse, that justifies their insertion of the article “a” in their translation. However, the Society is inconsistent with their “rule” for if they were consistent, they would have to translate John 1:6 as, “there arose a man that was sent forth as a representative of a God.” Since this translation wouldn’t make sense, the Society picks and chooses how it wants to apply its “rule” in accord with its doctrine.

Verse

Interlinear Translation

New World Translation

John 8:58

“Before Abraham to become I am.”

“Before Abraham came into existence, I have been.”

Note: The Greek words for “I am” are “ego eimi” . In every place where these words appear in the text of the Bible, the Society correctly translates them as “I am,” EXCEPT in this verse.19. Why the inconsistency in translation? Jesus was identifying Himself with the “I am” of Exodus 3:14 who is Jehovah God, and this is why the Jews tried to stone Him for blasphemy (see verse 59, compare with Leviticus 24:16). The Society mistranslated this verse because its correct translation contradicts their doctrine.

Verse

Interlinear Translation

New World Translation

John 14:10

“Not you are believing that I in the Father and the Father in me is?”

“I am in union with the Father and the Father is in union with me?”

John 14:14

“If ever anything you should ask me….”

“If you ask anything….”

Note: Because the Society teaches that Jesus isn’t God, they teach that one should not pray to Jesus. Since prayer is a form of worship, Jesus shouldn’t be prayed to unless, of course, He is God (see Exodus 23:13). As one can clearly see, since Jesus asked his followers to request things of Him in prayer, the Society had to omit the words “ask Me” in their translation so that this verse would be compatible with their doctrine.

Does the Society’s New World Translation pass the test of accuracy when measured by the Society’s Kingdom Interlinear Translation? Could this be why no recognized Greek scholars support the Watch Tower Society’s New World Translation, and instead affirm along with Dr. Julius Mantey that the Society’s translation is “a grossly misleading translation”? 20.

THE WATCHTOWER PROPHET:

“So, does Jehovah have a prophet to help them, to warn them of dangers and to declare things to come? These questions can be answered in the affirmative. Who is this prophet?…This ‘prophet’ was not one man, but was a body of men and women. It was the small group of footstep followers of Jesus Christ, known at that time as International Bible Students. Today they are know as Jehovah’s Christian witnesses….Of course, it is easy to say that this group acts as a ‘prophet’ of God. It is another thing to prove it. The only way that this can be done is to review the record. What does it show?” —The Watchtower, April 1, 1972, p. 197

1914: “…the ‘battle of the great day of God Almighty’ (Rev. 16:14), which will end in A.D. 1914 with the complete overthrow of earth’s present rulership, is already commenced.” —The Time Is At Hand, 1886, p. 101

1915: “…the ‘battle of the great day of God Almighty’ (Rev. 16:14), which will end in A.D. 1915, with the complete overthrow of earth’s present rulership, is already commenced.” —The Time Is At Hand, 1915 edition, p. 101

1918: “Also, in the year 1918, when God destroys the churches wholesale and the church members by millions, it shall be that any that escape shall come to the works of Pastor Russell to learn the meaning of the downfall of ‘Christianity.’ ” —The Finished Mystery, 1917, p. 485

1925: “…1925 shall mark the resurrection of the faithful worthies of old….based upon the promises set forth in the divine Word, we must reach the positive and indisputable conclusion that millions now living will never die.” —Millions Now Living Will Never Die, 1920, p. 97

1940’s: “It would therefore appear that there is no reasonable or Scriptural injunction to bring children into the world immediately before Armageddon, where we now are.” —The Watchtower, November 1, 1938, p. 324

1975: “Reports are heard of brothers selling their homes and property and planning to finish out the rest of their days in this old system in the pioneer service. Certainly this is a fine way to spend the short time remaining before the wicked world’s end.”—Kingdom Ministry, May 1974, p. 3

Most people who are familiar with the history of this organization realize that since the first Watchtower in 1879, it has had a history of proclaiming the end of the world on several dates: 1914, 1915, 1918, 1925, 1940’s, 1975. But, does this mean that the Watch Tower Society is a false prophet? Let’s examine what the Society says “False Prophets” are:

“Individuals and organizations proclaiming messages that they attribute to a super human source but that do not originate with the true God and are not in harmony with his revealed will.” —Reasoning from the Scriptures, 1985, 1989, p. 132

Deuteronomy 18:20-22 states:

“But the prophet who shall speak a word presumptuously in My name which I have not commanded him to speak, or which he shall speak in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die. And you may say in your heart, ‘How shall we know the word which the LORD has not spoken?’ When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.”

Under the section, “Have not Jehovah’s Witnesses made errors in their teachings?” on page 136 of the Society’s Reasoning from the Scriptures book, they state:

“Jehovah’s Witnesses do not claim to be inspired prophets. They have made mistakes.”

Is it true that the Society doesn’t claim to be an “inspired” prophet? Let’s examine the following statements from various Watchtower publications:

“What is here meant by the word ‘inspired’? It means that God, the Creator of heaven and earth, moved these men by his spirit or invisible empowering force, putting into their minds what they should write down as his ‘word,’ or message, for mankind.” —Good News, 1976, p. 14

“The Source of all true prophecy is Jehovah God. He transmits it by means of his holy spirit or, occasionally, by spirit-directed angelic messengers.”—Insight on the Scriptures, vol. 2, 1988, p. 691

“Consider, too, the fact that Jehovah’s organization alone, in all the earth, is directed by God’s holy spirit or active force…. That same holy spirit and angelic direction still affect the preaching activities of Christian ministers.” —The Watchtower, July 1, 1973, pp. 402, 405

“These angels are invisible to human eyes and are there to carry out the orders of the Lord. Not doubt they first hear the instruction which the Lord issues to his remnant and then these invisible messengers pass such instruction on to the remnant. The facts show that the angels of the Lord with him at his temple have been thus rendering service unto the remnant since 1919.” —Vindication III, 1932, p. 250

“There Ezekiel is definitely told that he is henceforth to serve as a prophet. He is commissioned to speak in the divine name…. He was thus, in an outstanding way, made a witness of Jehovah. Not alone were the inspired words of Ezekiel prophetic, but he himself was a prophetic figure in his action….Who is Ezekiel’s present-day counterpart, whose message and conduct correspond with that of that ancient prophet of Jehovah?… So it is with the modern-day counterpart of Ezekiel: it is, not one person’s body, but a composite body, made up of many members…. were commissioned to serve as the mouthpiece and active agent of Jehovah….Why, though, are all these facts of history brought to our attention? It is to show the fulfillment of prophecy. Jehovah has found and commissioned his modern-day ‘Ezekiel.’ ” —“The Nations Shall Know THAT I AM JEHOVAH —How?”, 1971, pp. 56, 58-59, 66

“The scroll was doubtless delivered to Ezekiel by the hand of one of the cherubs in the vision. This would indicate that Jehovah’s witnesses today make their declaration of the good news of the Kingdom under angelic direction and support. (Rev. 14:6,7; Matt. 25:31, 32) And since no word or work of Jehovah can fail, for he is God Almighty, the nations will see the fulfillment of what these witnesses say as directed from heaven. Yes, the time must come shortly that the nations will have to know that really a ‘prophet’ of Jehovah was among them.” —The Watchtower, April 1, 1972, p. 200

As can be clearly seen, although the Society declares that they “do not claim to be inspired prophets,” they claim to get their information the same way inspired prophets do (through angels and the Holy Spirit), and they claim to be on par with “inspired” prophets such as Ezekiel. Just like Ezekiel was a spokesman for God, the Society also claims to be Jehovah’s “mouthpiece,” and thus, they claim that they are speaking the very words of Jehovah. Note the following statements:

“The interpretation of prophecy, therefore, is not from man, but is from Jehovah; and Jehovah causes events to come to pass in fulfillment of the prophecy in due time.”—The Watchtower, May 1, 1938. p. 143

“This is not giving any credit to the magazine’s publishers, but is due to the great Author of the Bible with its truths and prophecies, and who now interprets its prophecies. He it is that makes possible the material that is published in the columns of this magazine….” —The Watchtower, April 15, 1943, p. 127

“We see no reason for changing the figures — nor could we change them if we would. They are, we believe, God’s dates, not ours. But bear in mind that the end of 1914 is not the date for the beginning, but for the end of the time of trouble.” —Zion’s Watch Tower, July 15, 1894, p. 226

Certainly humans make mistakes and even Jesus’ disciples had wrong expectations as to when the end would come. However, remember that at the time when the Watch Tower Society was making these prophecies about the end of the world, they were telling their followers that these “prophecies” and “dates” were “God’s dates, not ours.” They were proclaiming these prophecies in Jehovah’s name.

According to the standard for testing prophets, discussed in Deuteronomy 18:18-22 and in the Society’s Reasoning book, which category does the Watch Tower Society fall into? Are they a true or a false prophet? Do you agree with the Society’s statement in the May 15, 1930 p. 156 issue of The Watchtower which states that once a person discovers a “false prophet” the “people should no longer trust them as safe guides”?

Throughout its history, each time the Watch Tower Society set a date for the end, Jehovah’s Witnesses were often encouraged to sell their homes, put off education, and even put off having children, because, according to the Society, the “end” was so very near. Instead of putting your trust in an organization which has made substantial “mistakes” in the past and continues to make “mistakes,” why not put your complete trust in Jesus alone, who openly invites each one of us to come to Him.

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and YOU SHALL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. For My yoke is easy, and My load is light.” —Matthew 11:28-30

Jesus also warns that in the last days, false prophets will arise and claim that He came back when He did not:

“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is, do not believe him. For false Christs and false prophets will arise….”—Matthew 24: 23-24

Jehovah’s Witnesses presently believe that Jesus’ presence began in 1914 and that he has been reigning “invisibly” in the heavens ever since. However, from 1879-1929, the Watch Tower Society proclaimed Christ’s “invisible presence” began in 1874.21. Therefore, we see that even according to the Society’s present position, they falsely proclaimed Christ’s presence for 50 years.

Under oath, at the Douglas Walsh Trial, Hayden Covington (former vice president of the Watch Tower Society) gave this testimony concerning the 1874 date:

A.…that was the publication of a false prophesy, it was a false statement or an erroneous statement in fulfilment of a prophesy that was false or erroneous.Q. If a member of Jehovah’s Witnesses took the view himself that the prophesy was wrong and said so he would be disfellowshipped?A.Yes….Our purpose is to have unity.Q. And unity based upon an enforced acceptance of a false prophecy?A. That is conceded to be true.—Douglas Walsh Trial, 1954, pp. 346-348

Why would Jehovah appoint a false prophet to be His representative to mankind, especially since Jesus warned His followers not to follow prophets who would falsely prophesy His return?

To try to smooth over their history of false prophecies, the Society states:

“Matters on which corrections of viewpoint have been needed have been relatively minor when compared with the vital Bible truths that they have discerned and publicized. Among these are the following:…Since 1914 we have been living in the last days of the global wicked system of things.”—Reasoning from the Scriptures, 1985, 1989, pp. 136-137

As has already been pointed out, the Society has made quite a substantial doctrinal change when they changed their date for “Christ’s presence” from 1874 to 1914. When we examine the record, we also discover that their current claim to have always taught the so-called “Bible truth” that “Since 1914 we have been living in the last days” has also been CHANGED. Note the following statements in earlier Watchtower publications:

“The ‘Time of the End,’ a period of one hundred and fifteen (115) years, from A.D. 1799 to A.D. 1914, is particularly marked in the Scriptures.” —Thy Kingdom Come, (1891), 1914 edition, p. 23

“ ‘The time of the end’ embraces a period from A.D. 1799, as above indicated, to the time of the complete overthrow of Satan’s empire and the establishment of the kingdom of the Messiah. The time of the Lord’s second presence dates from 1874, as above stated.”—The Harp of God, (1921), 1924 ed., p. 231

On top of all this, the Society endeavors to cover-up their history by stating in their 1993 history book, Jehovah’s Witnesses — Proclaimers of God’s Kingdom, p. 135:

“As the years passed and they examined and reexamined the Scriptures, their faith in the prophecies remained strong, and they did not hold back from stating what they expected to occur. With varying degrees of success, they endeavored to avoid being dogmatic about details not directly stated in the Scriptures.”

Did they really, “avoid being dogmatic about details not directly stated in the Scriptures”?

“Surely there is not the slightest room for doubt in the mind of a truly consecrated child of God that the Lord Jesus is present and has been since 1874….” —The Watch Tower, January 1, 1924, p. 5

“We see not reason for changing the figures —nor could we change them if we would. They are, we believe, God’s dates, not ours.” —Zion’s Watch Tower, July 15, 1894, p. 226

“The typical Jubilee cycles pointed out A.D. 1874 as the date of our Lord’s return….And this testimony was made doubly strong by proofs from two standpoints —the Law and the Prophets….”—Thy Kingdom Come, (1891), 1914 ed., p. 125

“In this volume we offer a chain of testimony on the subject of God’s appointed times and seasons, each link of which we consider Scripturally strong….therefore cannot be of human origin.”—The Time is at Hand, (1886), 1917 ed., p. 15

And they avoided being “dogmatic”??

“Jehovah, the God of the true prophets, will put all false prophets to shame either by not fulfilling the false prediction of such self-assuming prophets or by having his own prophecies fulfilled in a way opposite to that predicted by the false prophets. False prophets will try to hide their reason for feeling shame by denying who they really are.”—Paradise Restored to Mankind —By Theocracy!, Watch Tower Society, 1972, pp. 353-354

Jesus said, “and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free….If therefore the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.” –John 8:32, 36 Why not place your complete trust in Jesus alone? He will always reveal to you the truth because He is the truth:

“Jesus said to Him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me.’ ” — John 14:6

“I have come as light into the world, that everyone who believes in Me may not remain in darkness.”—John 12:46

“You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is these that bear witness of Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me, that you may have life.” —John 5:39-40

“They said therefore to Him, ‘Lord, evermore give us this bread.’ Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believe in Me shall never thirst….All that the Father gives Me shall come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.’ ”—John 6:34-37

“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.” —John 14:27

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and YOU SHALL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. For My yoke is easy, and My load is light.” —Matthew 11:28-30

“If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.” —John 14:14

Jesus invites people everywhere to come to Him in prayer and to lay their burdens at His feet. You don’t need an organization or a special “mediator class” between you and God.22.“For there is one God, andone mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” —1 Timothy 2:5 Jesus is the only Mediator. “…no one comes to the Father, but through Me.”—John 14:6 Why not come to Him today? He truly wants to be your Savior.

“And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.” —1 John 5:11-13

“…behold, now is ‘THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,’ behold, now is ‘THE DAY OF SALVATION’.” —2 Corinthians 6:2